TOEIC Idioms and Phrases: Parts, Lists, Formal Verbs, Study

The page moves from where they appear to how you learn them.

Does the TOEIC Test Idioms and Phrasal Verbs?

Yes, but indirectly. The TOEIC Listening & Reading test has no question that asks for the meaning of an idiom in isolation. Business phrasal verbs and workplace expressions appear inside the audio and the texts, and understanding them is what lets you answer the comprehension question.

Three kinds of expression matter here. A phrasal verb joins a verb to a particle, as in call off. A set expression is a fixed group of words such as be in charge of or in advance. An idiom carries a meaning you can't build from its words, like cut corners or around the corner.

ETS builds the test on workplace English and everyday business situations, so slang and colorful idioms are rare. The expressions that count are the ones an office email or a meeting would use. Phrasal verbs carry most of the weight, and true idioms form a much smaller group.

Where Do Idioms and Phrasal Verbs Appear on the TOEIC?

Phrasal verbs and workplace idioms appear most in the Listening conversations and talks (Parts 2-4) and in written correspondence in Reading (Parts 5-7). In Part 2 the answer is often an indirect response. "It was pushed back to Friday" answers "When is the meeting?"

In Part 5, options can differ only in the particle. In Part 7, a vocabulary item asks which word is closest in meaning to a word in the passage. Part 1 photos use mostly literal verbs.

Each part handles these expressions in its own way.

Which Scheduling and Time Phrasal Verbs Appear on the TOEIC?

Meetings, deadlines and appointments shift in almost every TOEIC conversation and memo, which makes scheduling verbs the largest group. Each entry pairs a one-line meaning with a workplace sentence written for this page.

Almost every rescheduled meeting or deadline uses one of these six verbs.

• put off: postpone an event. "We put off the product launch until the new packaging arrives."
• push back: move a deadline later. "The client pushed back our deadline, so the report is due Monday."
• call off: cancel an arrangement. "The supplier called off Thursday's appointment because their sales manager was ill."
• run over: last longer than planned. "The budget meeting ran over by forty minutes, so lunch started late."
• move up: bring a date forward. "Management moved up the inspection to Tuesday, which leaves two days to prepare."
• fall behind (schedule): fail to keep pace. "The installation team fell behind schedule after the parts arrived late."

Which Phrasal Verbs Describe Work and Tasks?

Project updates and instructions in Parts 3, 4 and 7 lean on six verbs for doing, finishing and checking work. Three of them have formal equivalents covered later on this page: carry out (conduct), look into (investigate) and hand in (submit).

Each verb here comes with a task-level example.

• carry out: conduct or perform a task. "Our auditors will carry out the safety check next week."
• look into: investigate a problem. "IT is looking into why the shared drive keeps disconnecting."
• take on: accept new work. "Maria agreed to take on the Osaka project while Ken is away."
• follow up: check on progress later. "Please follow up with the printer if the brochures haven't arrived by noon."
• hand in: submit a report or form. "Staff must hand in expense reports by the last Friday."
• figure out: find a solution. "We still need to figure out how to ship samples overseas cheaply."

Which Expressions Cover People, Hiring and Staffing?

Staffing language concentrates in Part 7 job advertisements and personnel announcements, and in conversations about who is responsible for what. A notice about a promotion, a retirement or a new department head typically uses one or more of these.

Five expressions describe most personnel changes.

• be in charge of: be responsible for a task or department. "Ms. Patel is in charge of accounting."
• fill in for: cover someone temporarily. "Daniel will fill in for the receptionist during her vacation."
• step down: resign from a position. "The chief financial officer will step down at the end of June."
• let go: dismiss an employee. "The factory let go twelve employees after the second production line closed."
• take over: assume a role or duty. "Mr. Lee takes over as regional manager next month."

Which Expressions Cover Money, Orders and Stock?

Budget, purchase and inventory language fills invoices, order emails and sales talks. When a supplier is late or spending is cut, one of these five usually carries the detail the question asks about.

Orders and budgets come with their own short set.

• cut back on: reduce spending or use. "We're cutting back on travel to stay within this year's budget."
• run out of: exhaust a supply. "The cafeteria ran out of paper cups before the conference lunch break."
• break even: make neither profit nor loss. "The new branch expects to break even in its second year."
• place an order: buy from a supplier. "Please place an order for toner before the supplier's Friday cutoff."
• in stock / out of stock: available or not available. "That chair is out of stock until the next delivery."

Which Phrasal Verbs Cover Travel, Logistics and Equipment Problems?

Business trips, a late delivery and broken equipment produce a problem-and-solution pattern that recurs in Parts 3, 4 and 7. Something breaks down or a shipment goes missing, and a speaker proposes the fix.

Hotel stays, courier runs and repairs share these five verbs.

• check in / check out: register at or leave a hotel. "Conference guests check out by noon on Friday."
• pick up: collect a person or package. "A driver will pick you up at the airport."
• drop off: deliver a person or item. "The courier dropped off the shipment at the front desk."
• break down: stop working. "The second-floor copier broke down again, so we've called a technician."
• set up: install equipment. "A technician will set up the projector before the nine o'clock presentation."

Which High-Frequency Workplace Idioms Appear on the TOEIC?

True workplace idioms form a much smaller group than the phrasal verbs above. Office conversation uses only a handful, and several look literal. Taking the literal meaning is the usual misreading: around the corner often means a date is close, not a nearby street.

Six business idioms turn up often enough to learn.

• across the board: affecting everyone or every category equally. "The new travel policy applies across the board, interns included."
• around the corner: happening very soon or located nearby. "The audit is around the corner, so file everything today."
• cut corners: do something poorly to save time or money. "Never cut corners on safety checks."
• on the same page: sharing an understanding. "Let's meet briefly so everyone is on the same page."
• in advance: before the time it is needed. "Please book meeting rooms at least two days in advance."
• on short notice: with little warning. "Thanks for covering the client call on such short notice."

Which Formal Equivalents of Phrasal Verbs Appear in TOEIC Reading?

Reading texts are formal business documents, so they often print the one-word formal verb where a speaker would use a phrasal verb. You read postpone for put off, cancel for call off and investigate for look into. Conduct replaces carry out, and reduce replaces cut back on.

Knowing both forms pays twice. It answers the Part 7 item that asks for the word closest in meaning, and it removes the trap of a Part 5 option set that mixes a phrasal verb with its formal equivalent. The third column names where each pair can surface, not past test items.

Every row pairs the spoken form with the word a memo would print.

Which Phrasal Verbs Are Separable or Inseparable?

A separable phrasal verb lets the object sit between the verb and the particle: call the meeting off, call it off. An inseparable phrasal verb keeps them together, so you look into the problem, never look the problem into.

For Part 5 the rule that matters is the pronoun object. A separable verb must split around it, so call it off is right and call off it is wrong. Three-word phrasal verbs such as cut back on, fill in for and run out of never separate.

Sorted into two groups, the verbs from this page split cleanly.

• Separable: call off, put off, set up, hand in, figure out, take over; the object can split them.
• Inseparable: look into, run out of, cut back on, fill in for, fall behind; objects come after the particle.
• Pronoun rule: with a pronoun object, Part 5 expects "call it off", never "call off it".

Which Study Method Works for TOEIC Idioms and Phrasal Verbs?

The method that works ties every expression to a TOEIC context instead of memorizing a long list. Learn each one inside an example sentence, record the formal equivalent next to it, and harvest new expressions from the official practice material you complete.

A working set of the business expressions on this page is worth more than hundreds of general English idioms. Add new ones only when practice tests surface them. One trap is easy to predict: a learner who stored only "put off" can still miss "postpone" in a Part 7 synonym item.

Run these five steps in order, and repeat the last two every week.

1. Learn each expression in an example sentence: write one workplace sentence per verb, such as "The vendor called off the demo," so the meaning stays tied to a situation.
2. Write the formal equivalent beside it: in your vocabulary notebook, pair call off with cancel and look into with investigate, ready for Part 7 synonym items.
3. Group expressions by workplace topic: keep scheduling, staffing, money and travel on separate pages, because a TOEIC conversation usually stays inside one topic.
4. Collect new ones from official practice tests: after each official practice test, copy every unfamiliar expression with the sentence it came from, not a dictionary gloss.
5. Review with spaced repetition and self-testing: revisit each card after one day, three days and a week, covering the meaning and recalling it first.

Which Books, Apps and PDFs Help You Learn TOEIC Idioms and Phrases?

Start with ETS official practice material, then add a TOEIC vocabulary book, a flashcard app and free PDF lists, in that order. This is the move from learning expressions to practicing them.

ETS material comes first because it shows expressions exactly as the test uses them. ETS posts free TOEIC Listening and Reading Sample Tests on its prepare page. A vocabulary book organizes the lists, a flashcard app handles review, and PDF lists need checking. Titles, editions and prices change by country, so check the publisher page before you buy.

Each type fits a different stage, from first exposure to timed recall.

• ETS official practice tests: expressions in real test context, starting with the free ETS sample tests.
• TOEIC vocabulary and idiom books: organized lists with business example sentences; check the publisher page for the edition.
• Flashcard apps: daily spaced review in short sessions, ideal for the formal equivalents you keep confusing.
• Free PDF lists: quick reference on your phone, but check the source and look for business examples.
• Timed practice tests: recall under test conditions, where an expression has to click inside the time limit.

Are TOEIC Idioms and Phrases PDFs Worth Using?

Yes, a TOEIC idioms and phrases PDF is worth using as a quick reference, as long as it comes from a known publisher or teacher and gives a business example for each expression. Skip any PDF list padded with slang or proverbs the TOEIC rarely uses, or one with no example sentence per entry. Avoid uploads of copyrighted books on document-sharing sites. Pair a good list with our TOEIC vocabulary guide.

Where Can You Practice TOEIC Idioms and Phrases With Answers?

The most reliable practice with answers is a full TOEIC practice test, because it shows expressions inside real question types and marks your choices. The toeic.ai free plan includes fully marked mock tests, one full and one mini Listening & Reading test, plus unlimited unmarked timed practice papers. After each marked mock test, list the expressions behind your wrong answers and add them to your notebook. Start with a free TOEIC practice test.

Are 50 Common English Idioms Worth Learning for the TOEIC?

No, learning a general list of 50 common English idioms is only partly worth it for the TOEIC, because most of its entries are conversational idioms that the TOEIC's business setting rarely uses. Keep the workplace-friendly items, such as on the same page, cut corners and around the corner, plus anything you meet in official practice material.

The few general idioms that appear are most likely heard in the TOEIC Listening section, where speakers sound most natural.

Are Common TOEFL Exam Idioms Useful for the TOEIC?

No, common TOEFL exam idioms are only partly useful for the TOEIC, because the TOEFL tests academic and campus English while the TOEIC tests workplace English. The overlap sits in general phrasal verbs such as figure out and look into.

The gap runs both ways: campus idioms rarely reach a TOEIC office, and academic English lists skip business expressions such as place an order and fill in for. Our TOEIC vs TOEFL comparison covers the wider differences.